Information on voluntary Certification - Foodcert India

30Main requirements?To obtain certification, producer associations must function in ademocratic manner. There are also rules on how the fair-trade premiumhas to be spent and requirements for the protection of the environment.For plantations, there are a number of requirements related to labourrights: workersû treatment, freedom of association and collective bargaining,workersû housing and sanitation; workersû health and safety; and nochild or forced labour. In addition, the producer must comply with theenvironmental and social laws in the producing country and demonstratecontinual improvement in annual inspections (audits).How to get certified?FLO fair-trade certification can be applied for by a group of producers ina cooperative, a farmer association or by large farms with an organizedlabour force. Local auditors inspect the farm and the certification agencyFlo-Cert Ltd decides whether or not to certify the producer association.Once certified, there is a regular inspection once a year to check that theproducers meet the fair-trade requirements and to examine how they usedthe fair-trade premium. Traders who use the FLO certification mark ontheir packages currently pay a license fee. Producers have to pay feeswhich are based on the costs of the inspection.Opportunities and constraintsA producer association or a plantation can benefit from fair-tradecertification since certified products normally receive higher and morestable prices. The price paid to producers is determined by productioncosts. It takes into consideration any additional costs that might arisefrom meeting the fair-trade requirements, such as providing living wagesfor workers. In general, the fair trade premium is meant to provide some